Ronald Araujo will have had one clear takeaway after watching Liverpool lose to Monaco at Anfield
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Liverpool supporters hoping to see Ronald Araujo at Anfield during Sunday’s friendly against Monaco were left disappointed, with the Uruguayan’s move from Barcelona still yet to be rubberstamped.Nevertheless, having arrived on Merseyside to undergo a medical earlier in the day, it feels fairly certain that Araujo will have watched the match from somewhere.As he gets to grips with life as a new Liverpool player, the centre-back will likely be hoping that he can do enough for the Reds to trigger his £47m buy clause next year. How do you feel about Liverpool signing Barcelona captain Ronald Araujo on loan?
Nobody saw this coming! 🫨 Photo Credit: Getty Images/Pedro Salado However, after watching what Ifeanyi Ndukwe served up during Sunday’s game, Araujo will probably have come away feeling the same as everyone else: that the Austrian is destined for the Liverpool first-team in 2027, potentially leaving him heading straight back to Barcelona.Ndukwe shows why Araujo’s stay will be temporaryIt may be wrong to write Araujo off before he even arrives at Liverpool, but the chances of him making his move to Anfield permanent already seemed remote before Sunday’s game.But if any Reds fan needed reminding, Ndukwe demonstrated once again that he is an absolutely top, top prospect at centre-back. Had they been able to secure one, it is highly unlikely Araujo would have been needed in the first place.Photo by Daniel Bartel/Getty ImagesREAD MORE: Liverpool player ratings vs Monaco as Reds throw away Andoni Iraola’s debut at AnfieldYoung he may be, but Ndukwe looks ready to play a part in the senior Liverpool squad already.
He was impeccable next to Virgil van Dijk on Sunday, looking every bit a future first-team player.Ndukwe ultimately only featured for 45 minutes, but it was enough to see that he will not be overawed by playing at Anfield alongside players of the calibre of Van Dijk, Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak.A year away on loan will do him the world of good, and he should return completely ready to play a bigger part.That is bad news for Araujo, who now feels even more like a stop-gap solution than he did when the whistle blew at Anfield this afternoon. Plenty can change in a year, but right now, Ndukwe looks like the future of Liverpool.